Gray On Positive Performance After Rangers Stalemate

Hibs Head Coach David Gray had mixed emotions at full-time after an entertaining - but goalless - draw with Rangers at Easter Road. 

It was a much-improved performance from the Hibees, as we took the game to Rangers, creating plenty of chances and fighting hard in what was a spirited display from start to finish. 

Speaking to Hibs TV after the match, Gray was pleased with the reaction he got from his side - after two disappointing defeats - but admitted he was frustrated not to come away with all three points.  

“We clearly got that reaction today. I think the biggest bit is the fact that we are disappointed that we haven’t won the game. So that shows you the level of performance is much more like us.

“We created the best chances in the game. We needed to get a clean sheet; we got that and I thought we restricted Rangers to very little.

“Our shape was good, we defended set pieces really well, which is a big focus of ours this week because of our history against them and the fact that Rangers are very dangerous at set pieces, so that’s positive. The frustrating side of it is that it feels like it’s an opportunity potentially missed because of the chances we created within the game.

“But the positives to take are that we went toe-to-toe with a team that’s at the top of the league in a title race.

“We need to take confidence and belief from that, on another day, we can turn that point today into three points more often than not. If you can have that level of performance and be a bit more consistent in front of goal, I do believe that will happen." 

Over the course of the match, we created plenty of opportunities, with Jack Butland called into action on several occasions to keep the scores level. 

Despite not being clinical enough, Gray was pleased with the overall performance level - including the contributions from new January signings Owen Elding, Kai Andrews and Dane Scarlett who all made their Hibs debuts off the bench.

“It is frustrating, especially against a side like Rangers, because chances against them don’t come along as often, so when you do get them, you need to take them. 

“I thought we didn’t have proper, clear-cut ones, but we had five or six really good half-chances. We had a couple of headers in the first half, Boyle had one, and a couple in the second half as well. If we were a little bit more clinical, I thought we would have got three points today.

“It is something to build on and to work on moving forward. We’ve got new players in the building as well who have come in and added to that today.

“I’m really happy with their contribution, considering some of them have only been in the building for 24 hours. That’s really positive and gives us something to build on moving forward."

Up next, we host Dundee United at Easter Road in midweek, with Gray looking to get back to winning ways as quickly as possible. 

“After the disappointment of the last two weeks, it’s about not getting carried away. It’s a point at home in a game that we tried to win and had an expectation to win. 

“What it does mean is it’s only one defeat in seven in the league - we know we need to keep getting better and keep improving. That level of consistency needs to be there for us to have a really successful season, and I think we can do that.

“We’ve got another home game coming up. You always want to try and win your home games. We know it’ll be a difficult one, but the important thing now is for us to recover the players as quickly as we can. 

“We picked up a couple of niggling injuries today, with Miguel coming off and Grant (Hanley) coming off, so we’ll assess them quickly and see where we are. 

“It will also help to get a little bit more time on the grass for the new players who have come in. As I say, there’s a lot to work with and a lot to move forward with.”

Watch the full interview on Hibs TV!